Best Practice

Definition

Something another company did once that worked and has now become an unquestionable commandment carved in corporate stone. The adult version of "but mom, everyone else is doing it."

Example Usage

"According to best practices, we should be doing it this way," said the consultant, citing a case study from a company that went bankrupt in 2014.

Related Terms

Intermediate

linkage

A fancy corporate term for 'connection' that makes simple relationships sound more impressive in strategy presentations and consultant reports. It refers to how different things—processes, systems, incentives, or metrics—are mechanically or conceptually connected to produce outcomes, usually in ways that require extensive PowerPoint diagrams to explain. In executive meetings, establishing linkage between your project and revenue somehow makes budget requests more persuasive.

💼 Corporate / Business

Advanced

glass cliff

The phenomenon where women and minorities are more likely to be promoted to leadership positions during crises when failure is probable, effectively setting them up as scapegoats. The ceiling breaks only when the building is on fire.

💼 Corporate / Business

Beginner

estimate

A sophisticated guess dressed up in professional language, typically provided by contractors who will later explain why the actual cost is double. In business, it's that document specifying what a job 'should' cost before reality, scope creep, and unforeseen complications enter the chat. The more detailed the estimate, the more creative the eventual excuses.

💼 Corporate / Business

Intermediate

allocate

The bureaucratic art of dividing limited resources among unlimited demands, usually followed by everyone complaining they didn't get enough. In computing, it means reserving memory for a program; in business, it means deciding who gets what budget; in both cases, someone always feels shortchanged. It's essentially strategic rationing dressed up in management-speak, where the word "equitable" gets thrown around while politics actually determines the distribution.

💼 Corporate / Business

Beginner

Quarterback

To lead or coordinate a project, borrowing from football despite most office workers never having touched a football. The person who gets credit when things work and blamed when they don't.

💼 Corporate / Business

Intermediate

cookie-licking

Claiming a project or territory without actually doing anything with it, like a toddler licking cookies so siblings can't have them. It's territorial pissing for professionals.

💼 Corporate / Business

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Intermediate

let him cook

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